Although these App lists are very helpful in keeping up with the incredible amount of AAC Apps currently available for iDevices, parents and professionals are still left with the question of which one is best for their kids. This is further complicated by the fact that many of the AAC Apps currently available do not offer demo versions in the App Store, nor do the App developers offer sales representative services in which the Apps can be demonstrated at an AAC evaluation.

Feature matching is a strategy used by AAC professionals to assess currently available AAC technology with regard to various "features" (e.g., the symbols on the device, the manners in which a user can access or interact with the device, etc...) and then to match those features with the needs of the AAC user to assist in finding the best AAC system for that user. As you can imagine, this can be a cross-referencing nightmare! Luckily, in the field of AAC devices, many professionals and companies have attempted to simplify this task by compiling feature-match charts and creating software programs to help professionals and families narrow the search for the best system.

AAC Tech Connect, a site with many AAC resources and tools to offer (for free and fee) comes a bit closer to categorizing popular AAC Apps by feature (e.g., “Apps with Pictures” and “Apps with Spelling”).It appears that they plan to release a fee-for-service tool called “AAC Apps Assistant” at some point this month (although a release date was unclear on their website, as was whether this tool would be web-based or run directly on an iDevice).The sample layout of the assistant shown on the website appears pretty promising.I look forward to checking it out and being able to follow up on its relevance in later posts. :)

POST UPDATE: As of December13, 2011,The Apps Assistant is available (free trial for a limited time) at AAC Tech Connect! (Click on "Preview" to set up login for free trial)

Does anyone have a feature match or other AAC App selection tool that they currently use?